


How Far We've Come

by Kamaya



Category: Original Work
Genre: Found Family, LGBTQ Character, Post-Apocalyptic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-15 10:14:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29062641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kamaya/pseuds/Kamaya
Summary: Times are hard. What could possibly make it better ? Probably a bunch of misfits trying their best to find their way.Between the wars, the hunger, the dryness of the deserts and the dampness of the cities, a bunch of survivors from very different background fight for their life and their happiness.--This work is a completely original text I'm working on, I'll try to upload a chapter once a week.I rated it as "mature" but I think it's okay for teenage audience too, I just wanted to be safe. I also chosed not to use content warning but I'll actually add them at the beginning of every chapter, so don't worry.You can also read it on Royal Road here : https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/39796/how-far-weve-come
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	1. An Old Recors

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone ! So I'm (finally) starting posting this, after all this time.   
> We're starting with a really short chapter but I hope you'll still enjoy it ! Please leave a comment it would mean the world to me !
> 
> For the content warnings : As this is a post-apocalyptic story, weapons and wounds will be mentionned MANY times. If this is uncomfortable for you, please stay safe.  
> CW for this chapter : Vague mentions of weapons and abusive family.

An old song was playing on the radio again. Well, “old”, Jen couldn’t really say if there were any new songs to be played anyway. She found herself humming to it, praying for the radio not to drain her car's battery as she was only parked on an abandoned playground. There weren’t many kids who could play either.

Kara and her did.

She brushed the thought away in a swift movement to grab her gun out of the bag sitting next to her. She didn't have time for distraction. She was on a manhunt. Her prey was fast, she was clever, more analytical than she looked like, driven by her thirst for liberty, and secondarily : her sister. Janice knew her, she knew her better than anyone in the world. If you'd ask Kara, she was literally the only person who knew her. This would have been a good thing, if Kara wasn't as well the only person in the world who knew Jen. Maybe even better than she knew herself.

Kara was emotional. That was her weakness. She could never train because she would be afraid to hurt her. She would never use her full capacity against Jen.  _ Pathetic _ . She could hear their mother’s voice.

Kara was emotional, which was why she'd always come back here. That’s how they played.

It wasn't the first time she ran away. Only the first she stayed outside for so long. Every time she'd run away, their mother would cry her eyes out, and as soon as she was back at the front door, her green eyes would swallow up the tears, leaving no proof of them ever existing, and her mind would immediately shift to rage.

Their mother was really good at being angry. She did that all the time. Her educating technique was simple and effective. First she'd scream, second she'd make them feel guilty, third she wouldn’t talk to them at all during two or three days, before finally pretending nothing ever happened. Kara was vulnerable to this, especially to the second step.  _ She's too empathetic. _

Jen wetted her lips, tasting the somehow salty sand that rested there, as her heartbeat started to get faster. She lit a cigarette and forced the thoughts out of her head while staring at the broken seesaw, as if staring hard enough would make Kara magically appear. Janice knew she was coming back. 

Kara was too weak to survive out there. Kara was too weak to be alone. Kara was too weak to leave her. Kara was too weak.


	2. First Mission

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone ! I know not a lot of people are reading this here but I'll keep updating anyway !  
> There aren't any important TW for this chapter so enjoy !

They were all standing perfectly still, spines as straight as they could possibly be. Their childish faces impossible to read. Untrained eyes would have mistaken them for androids. The only display of emotion in the room was Blue nervously playing with her hands. The kid next to her finally broke into a movement, turning their head towards Blue, sharing a look with her. Suddenly, she stood up a little straighter and stopped shifting nervously. The kid went back to their original position so precisely it looked like they never moved in the first place.

Their name was X. “Name”. Well, that was what the teachers and educators had called them their entire life. All the other kids at the Academy changed their names when they were old enough to. Sometimes they'd ask X why they didn't change it, and they would simply answer that they didn't have a better idea. Some found it ridiculous and the proof of a profound lack of imagination, but Blue always thought they said it in a really cool and mysterious manner. X was that one scary kid in school, and the standards to be the scary kid in a school like the Academy were high. 

Blue's stillness didn't last long. Soon enough, she was turning her eyes and head to look around the room. This was the first time she got inside it, as it were for all the other kids around her. Everything looked like it was made of plastic: the floor, the walls, the furniture – the kids. She found herself wondering how they kept this place so neat. After all, she never saw anyone cleaning around, but the Academy always looked like it was fresh out of the ground. Everything was always perfect. _Except me._ She jumped slightly at the noise of a door opening. The Headmaster entered and X was the first kid to salute before him. Blue was the last.

He stood before them and said things Blue didn’t catch. She wasn’t good with speeches. They always said the exact same things with the exact same words, so instead of focusing on the meaning of what the Headmaster was saying, she entertained herself by counting the words he repeated. “Efficiency”, “Honour”, “Mission”. 

She wasn’t good with numbers too, so she quickly lost track of that too.

Once the long speech over, the Headmaster silently approached his students, and handed a little device to every kid, who immediately looked at them. They all glanced at the Headmaster to make sure he wasn't watching before expressing any emotion to their peers. X's breath itched when he passed by without giving them anything. Instead he went directly to Blue, who was staring at X in panic. _There must have been a misunderstanding._

“Sir you didn't give a planner to X-” Intervened Blue, before even looking at her own planner, while the man seemed to go back to his previous position.

“You all have a mission, now please go. Let order and peace fall on the Academy.” He said ignoring Blue’s protest.

“Let order and peace fall on the Academy” all the kids answered in unison.

X answered too, out of an unconscious habit, as their mind was already far from their body. Blue looked at them one last time before leaving the room – they didn't see her. X suddenly got back the control of their own body, and started walking out of the room when the man called them. X looked at him unsure if it was real or not.

“We need to talk.”

_Probably the worst four words a human being can hear._

“You know we value you as an Academy member.”

_They are going to toss me out._

“You are a brilliant student,”

_Or kill me._

“and you should understand-”

_I can’t give up._

“Sir, I'm sorry if I ever did something wrong, but I swear I can do better, give me one last mission I-” They stopped talking in the middle of their sentence, suddenly seeing their superior's face. X wasn't good with human emotions, but they knew what disappointment looked like.

“Maybe I should ask someone else.” If he didn't already have a problem with X before, he had one now, seeing them interrupting him and acting so desperate and insecure.

X realized their mistake and stood straight again, putting on their emotionless mask again, avoiding their superior's gaze. They both stood here in a cold silence, before he handed them a planner.

“What I was going to say, before you interrupted me with such rudeness, was that I hope you understand we cannot give you all the information on this mission.”

“I understand, sir.”

He started to walk towards the hallway, opposite to the one the other kids took, and motioned to X to follow him.

“Your target is Vic---. She was a student here.” X let themselves look surprised as the headmaster couldn't see them. “She is an excellent fighter, strong, sturdy. Which is why we chose you for this mission. A true assassin acting in the shadows will be more efficient against her than a fighter rushing into battle.”

“Excuse-me sir but - why are we eliminating her ?” They risked themselves to ask a few seconds of walking later.

“She left the Academy years ago, and she's causing us... trouble. I have a file for you in my office, it won't be in your planner to be sure this information doesn't fall into the wrong hands.”

They arrived in the headmaster's office. X went here only once before, bringing Blue as she arrived late at training again. He handed them a file, showing their target name as well as a “classified” written in red ink. X couldn't help but feel proud they were assigned this mission. It's always exciting to get handed files with a big red “classified” written on them. 

They quickly put on a professional expression on their childish face and went through the file. Apparently she didn't went too far from the Academy – _probably to cause them trouble, as the headmaster said_ – she lived close to Raksas’ border – _Presumably to profit from the advantage of having such a state near by, but not having to bow to Raksas' laws –_ and it seemed she worked for a while as a mercenary, before giving up and becoming – _A whore ? Did I read that well ? All that training and education at the Academy for this ?_ They immaturely blushed at this. The rest of the file wasn't really interesting, most of the censored part was about what she did after leaving the Academy, which was weird but X wouldn’t have dared to question the Headmaster’s choices. There were also report cards and accounts from missions, all leading to what the headmaster had already told them : she was a soldier, and a good one.

“You're going right away.” He said as they gave him back the file.

“What ?” X was confused. They never left in a rush for a mission. They were ashamed of it, but it was their first mission alone, they wished they could have at least said goodbye to the rest of their usual team. They always had been looking forward to that moment when they’ll finally have a mission of their own and they could discuss it with the others, prepare for it. It was part of what it meant to be a student at the Academy. 

As he put a heavy suitcase in their hands, he said something about the other kids who shouldn't know what was going on – out of worry they'd panic hearing about the Academy coming for an ex-student – and the trust the whole Academy gave X. 

_No pressure,_ they thought as a man they didn’t even hear entering the office motioned to them to follow him. _No pressure._


	3. 3. Entry number 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is very short but a longer one is on the way ! Enjoy !

Dear diary,

I did it. I finally did it.

I was scared about Isaac, but he didn't ask too many questions.

I fear he laid a hand on him too.

How could I not notice it ? How could I be so stupid ?

I stole as much as I could from the store, but I'm worried it'll only get us out of the country.

I remember that client who saw my black eye one day. They mentioned something about women helping other women. The Amazons or something like that. She said it in a really cryptic way, and I just thought it was some pagan bullshit.

I'm meeting with one of them tonight. They’re hiding throughout the state. I'm worried she'll tell me to stay in one of their hideouts. Isaac isn't safe here.

I'm also worried they won't believe me.

I don't have any proof about what he did to me. And I've been smiling and laughing nervously all day long. Don't look much like a survivor, right ?

It's just the stress. And the fear. And the happiness. It doesn't mix well in my brain.

I’m so scared. I'm scared he'll find us. I'm scared I'll have to go back.

What if we can't leave the country ? What if I can't find a job ? I've never been good at anything, how can we just start a new life out of nothing ? What if I don't have enough for Isaac to live ? I would have to go back. I can’t do it. I can’t even think about it. 

I never lived outside. Outside a house, outside the state. I have no idea what it’s like there. What if it’s worse ? What if hell was just on the other side of the border ?


	4. 4. Strange little bird

An old man was listening to the radio, half asleep in an armchair that was in a remarkable shape compared to the rest of the furniture. Anyone could have read on his face that he was the kind of guy who didn't care about anything but himself, but not in a bad way. The man wasn't selfish in that “I'll stomp on whatever gets in my path to get what I want” way, he was more of a “Don't bother me and I won't bother you” kind of guy. He ran the family business alone for as long as his memory, shortened by an abusive use of alcohol, could go. It wasn't much, but his motel was all he had and all he needed. The entire place was riddled with bullet holes, and had been partially destroyed at some point. It was obviously one of those pre-war buildings that still stood up somehow.

The business was doing okay. Nothing too much, just enough to afford food, clean water, booze, get his car and electricity working, and even sometimes enough money for the local sex workers. That was better than most people could do. To be fair, he didn't work half as much as most people, he just got extremely lucky : the motel was near Raksas' border, making it a stop for anyone who wanted to get inside the state, or sometimes for soldiers to stop by, and the local area wasn't exactly safe, so he just had to be sure that the travelers passing by would know that, and they would just convince themselves it'd be better to pay to sleep between four (sometimes three) walls than camping outside.

But motels were also great for one thing : they were never too crowded. That was exactly what the young woman outside was thinking as she examined the building. She closed her eyes and sighed, before opening them up again and running towards the unlit wall of the motel, climbing it before her brain could process the fact that she would break her neck on the hard ground if she fell. She had spent a few minutes watching the building. She had seen the drunken man inside his large room on the first floor. She immediately guessed it was the owner, aka the man to avoid. It was one of these motels with metal stairs on the outside leading directly to the rooms, and Kara, the young woman, had already noticed the lights facing the stairs. They were unlit, but certainly worked with movement sensors, and would have lightened up just the moment she'd take the stairs. Therefore, her best shot was to climb up the facade, and get to a window. But of course it couldn't be so easy : the absence of lights coming from the window had led her to believe the room was empty, but the renter was actually just asleep. Kara cursed under her breath, she'd have to parkour her way from window to window until she found an empty room, all while avoiding to crash into one of an awake or asleep renter – or on the ground.

Finally, she found an empty room. She thanked God for the cheap window lock, easy to pick despite the constant dread of falling her last fall. She snaked inside the room before cursing again at the sight of a bag that had obviously traveled a long way on the floor. This wasn't her plan, she was just looking for somewhere to spend the night, but the bag was just here, unguarded, and the owner was nowhere to be seen, so she allowed herself a look inside.  _ I'll just take something and find myself another room. _ She opened it,  _ food, that's good.  _ She took some of the cans and stuffed them in her own bag.  _ What the fuck are they doing with so many guns ? _ She held the thing in such an unnatural way that it seemed as if it was completely unknown to her, some strange object coming from a different planet. She sighed and ruffled her short green hair, making dust and sand she didn't know were in it fall on her shoulders. Suddenly remembering she was in a hurry, she took the smallest gun in her hand, and started closing the bag, before her ears perked up at the sound of the door's lock opening.

_ Fuck _ .

She didn't have many options, she could run to the window and pray to suddenly become the fastest person alive and to be nimble enough to not fall face flat against the concrete. But that was a toss of the dice. She’d have to go with a bolder option : straightening up and watch the door open. Instinctively, Kara dropped the gun she was trying to steal and swiftly reached for the crossbow in her back and pointed it to the intruder.  _ Well technically, I'm the intruder. _ Hearing the sound of the weapon falling on the ground, the man grabbed his own gun from his holster and shot a warning shot into the sink, behind Kara.

“That's not really respectful to the owner.” Kara said glancing at the broken sink – thankfully not alimented in water.

“That's your go-to ?” the man said at the same time surprised by her choice to drop the gun and to grab instead a –  _ what was that ? A crossbow ? Really ? _

They both looked at each other, confused for a moment.

“Well I couldn't be sure the gun was loaded since it's not mine.” She tried to justify herself, blushing lightly. The truth was that she didn't even think about using the gun.

He started lowering his gun with a puzzled expression on his face, while stepping inside the room. “How did you get in ?” He asked realizing the supplementary locks he had added on the door were still there.

“The window.” She answered plainly, but she understood from his expression she needed to elaborate. “I was looking for somewhere to sleep, I didn't mean to steal. I escalated the facade and picked the window lock. The security wasn't hard to break.” She lowered her crossbow a little when she noticed she was the only one really holding a weapon against the other. “Though,” she continued as the embarrassment made her run her mouth, “don't complain about it to him, I overheard him and his wife and then watched him get super wasted, the guy's got a lot on his plate.”

Ringo blew air from his nose, curious about this strange meeting, and put his gun back in his holster, now certain she wouldn't kill him. Her brows shot up at his movements, but she eventually copied him and just awkwardly clutched her weapon against her, like a child would hold their teddy.

“Anyway,” she started after an awkward silence, “I'm just gonna go check another room and leave you alone I guess ?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave kuddos or a comment it really means the world to me !


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